goon2019
Posts 392
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Could Facebook’s messenger merger signal dark days for WhatsApp users?
Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg recently announced plans to merge his three dominant messaging services: Instagram, Facebook Messenger, and WhatsApp. The goal, according to Facebook, is to create a more unified service across all three platforms.
“We want to build the best messaging experiences we can; and people want messaging to be fast, simple, reliable and private,” a Facebook spokesperson said.
With these services integrated, users will be able to easily message one another from different apps. But while the merger may make these services more convenient, it doesn’t necessarily mean they’ll be more secure.
Encryption as an afterthought
The decision to merge these services has both lawmakers and privacy advocates scratching their heads. Zuckerberg has already stated plans to make each of the three messaging apps encrypted, but the real question is how.
WhatsApp was one of the first messaging services to offer end-to-end encryption, while Messenger offers customizable encryption features that need to be turned on manually. Instagram, however, offers no such protections (or options).
Will Instagram and Messenger be retooled to offer the same privacy settings as WhatsApp? Or will WhatsApp be downgraded with weaker security software to help it function like the other apps?
These are just a sample of the dozens of questions security experts are asking.
Matthew Green
@matthew_d_green
· Jan 25, 2019
Replying to @matthew_d_green
I suppose it’s possible that FB is going to massively upgrade all of its services to have mandatory e2e and they’ll solve all these problems somehow. But that seems like a risky bet. 6/
Matthew Green
@matthew_d_green
The second problem is that the increased access to metadata. As the article points out, WA users register with a telephone and FB users don’t. I suspect FB has already done a lot to link these identifiers together, but cross-app comms will be even more effective. 7/
67
10:52 PM - Jan 25, 2019
Twitter Ads info and privacy
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What’s more, how will the login details work? WhatsApp users currently need to only enter a valid phone number to use the app, but Messenger uses the information populated from Facebook—including your full name and email address.
While the merger isn’t set to take effect until 2020, WhatsApp users may want to start looking for an alternative messaging service. We’ve covered a handful over the years (spoiler: Signal’s one our favorites), and while these services may not offer the same cross-functionality as Facebook-owned messengers, each is arguably more private.
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